As humans, we change as we grow up, but not too much. While we get taller and stronger, our basic shape and form remain the same. That is not the case for many insects. Many of us are familiar with the transformation a caterpillar must go through to become a beautiful butterfly. This is a common kind of transition that many insects go through.
In fact, ladybugs go through this same life cycle: complete metamorphosis. During complete metamorphosis, insects move through four distinct life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Let's look at the details of each of these life stages in ladybugs as they go from crawling caterpillar-like creatures to the tiny red and black polka-dotted beetles we all know.